Phenazopyridine / Sulfisoxazole News

THURSDAY, Nov. 17, 2016 – Antibiotics taken orally are as effective – and doubtless much more welcome – than intravenous antibiotics for children recovering at home from complex pneumonia, a new study finds. Youngsters with complex pneumonia typically have to take antibiotics for one to three weeks after they leave the hospital, the researchers noted. To see if one medication method outperformed the other, the investigators looked at more than 2,100 children treated for complex pneumonia at 36 U.S. hospitals. Not only were oral antibiotics as effective as IV ones, they also avoided the risk of infection and other complications related to so-called peripherally inserted central venous catheters ("PICC lines"), which are used to administer intravenous antibiotics, the researchers said. "PICC line complications can be serious, resulting in hospital readmission, additional procedures and ... Read more

-- Antibiotic resistance applies when bacteria are no longer eliminated by a medicine that's supposed to kill them. Experts blame the problem on improper use of antibiotic medications. Here's what you can do to help, according to the World Health Organization: Only take antibiotics when prescribed by a health professional. Always finish the entire supply of antibiotics. Stopping too soon may allow the bacteria to continue living. Never save antibiotics for later use or use leftover antibiotics, and never share antibiotics with someone else. To help reduce the risk of infection in the first place, wash your hands often, get vaccinations and limit your contact with sick people. Read more

MONDAY, Sept. 19, 2016 – Despite growing concerns about creating drug-resistant bacteria, overprescribing of antibiotics in U.S. hospitals didn't drop between 2006 and 2012, according to a new federal report. Over that time period, 55 percent of patients received at least one dose of antibiotics during their hospital stay, whether it was needed or not, researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. "Antibiotic use remains common, and use of the most powerful antibiotics is rising," said lead researcher James Baggs, a CDC epidemiologist. Although the use of antibiotics remained about the same during the study period, a significant increase was seen in the use of newer antibiotics, Baggs said. "Because inappropriate antibiotic use increases the risk of antibiotic resistance and other side effects, continued monitoring of antibiotic use is critical to future ... Read more

TUESDAY, May 3, 2016 – Nearly one-third of the antibiotics prescribed in the United States aren't appropriate for the conditions being treated, a new federal government study shows. "We were able to conclude that at least 30 percent of the antibiotics that are given in doctors' offices, emergency departments and hospital-based clinics are unnecessary, meaning that no antibiotics were needed at all," said lead researcher Dr. Katherine Fleming-Dutra. Such misuse has helped fuel the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which infect 2 million Americans and kill 23,000 every year, said Fleming-Dutra, a pediatrician and epidemiologist at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Antibiotics are most misused in the treatment of short-term respiratory conditions, such as colds, bronchitis, sore throats, and sinus and ear infections, the researchers reported. "About half of ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 17, 2016 – Delirium in hospitalized patients might be linked to common antibiotics more often than once believed, according to new research. Delirium – mental confusion that may be paired with hallucinations and agitation – is often caused by medications. But, antibiotics are not typically the first type of drug suspected, said study lead author Dr. Shamik Bhattacharyya, a neurologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. Reviewing case reports going back seven decades on patients given antibiotics who later developed delirium and related issues, the scientists found that nearly half suffered delusions or hallucinations. Seven out of 10 were found to have abnormal electrical activity in the brain. "A key point in the study is that different antibiotics caused different types of confusion," Bhattacharyya said. "The fact that antibiotics can cause confusion has ... Read more

A groundbreaking agreement between the drug industry and governments to work together to fight drug-resistant "superbugs" is expected to be announced Thursday. Under the deal, 74 drug makers, 11 diagnostic test makers, and nine industry groups pledge to work with each other and 16 countries to prevent and improve treatment of drug-resistant infections, the Associated Press reported. These infections are a serious threat to millions of people worldwide and a number of factors contribute to the problem, including overuse of antibiotics, declining drug industry research, and few new medicines to combat bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungi. The new deal – scheduled to be announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland – is the first to outline how the drug industry and governments should team up to prevent more drugs from becoming ineffective, to spur development of new ... Read more

THURSDAY, Dec. 24, 2015 – Patients can be taught to safely self-administer long-term intravenous antibiotics at home, without the help of a health care worker, a new study suggests. The finding could have a significant impact on uninsured patients who might otherwise spend weeks in a hospital receiving IV care, according to researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. "This really taps into human potential, giving a voice to the uninsured at the same time that it offers an opportunity for enormous cost savings to hospitals," study first author Dr. Kavita Bhavan, assistant professor of internal medicine, said in a medical center news release. Some infections require treatment with IV antibiotics for six weeks or more. Patients with insurance typically go home or to a nursing home and have their antibiotics administered by a home health care worker or ... Read more

-- By taking an antibiotic as prescribed, you can get well faster and help prevent germs from becoming resistant to your medication. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers these antibiotic guidelines: Never skip a dose of antibiotic. Always take it on schedule, as directed. Never stop taking an antibiotic early. Always take the entire prescription, unless your doctor tells you otherwise. Never save any antibiotic medication for a future illness. Never take an antibiotic that was prescribed for another person. Read more

MONDAY, Nov. 2, 2015 – Antibiotics may not reduce the risk of infections in patients who undergo what's known as a "complicated" appendix removal, a new study finds. "The traditional teaching is that all patients with complicated appendicitis receive post-operative antibiotics to reduce the risk of wound infection or deep organ space infection," study lead author Dennis Kim, of the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute, explained in an institute news release. But is that advisory warranted? To find out, Kim's team tracked five-year outcomes for 410 patients. All of the patients had complicated appendectomies, meaning that their appendix was found to be perforated or gangrenous. About two-thirds of the patients received antibiotics after surgery. Those who received antibiotics had no fewer infections, Kim's team said, and they stayed in hospital an average of one day longer than ... Read more

TUESDAY, Aug. 4, 2015 – An immediate, focused effort to halt the spread of antibiotic-resistant germs could save tens of thousands of lives and prevent hundreds of thousands of new infections over the next five years, a new government report suggests. As many as 37,000 lives could be saved, and 619,000 new infections prevented, if community health departments and health care facilities form tight support networks to quickly identify and address emerging outbreaks of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, said report author Dr. John Jernigan. He directs the Office of HAI (Health care-Associated Infections) Prevention Research and Evaluation at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "When health care facilities and health departments in a community work together to share information about resistance, and then use that information to guide and target prevention efforts, then we ... Read more

THURSDAY, Oct. 9, 2014 – Although food allergies have garnered a lot of attention lately, a new study reports that medications are actually the biggest cause of sudden deaths related to allergy. Over a little more than a decade, nearly 60 percent of the allergy-related deaths were caused by medications, while less than 7 percent were caused by food allergies, the study found. "Medications can be dangerous," said study researcher Dr. Elina Jerschow, director of the Drug Allergy Center at Montefiore Medical Center and assistant professor of medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, in New York City. While research from other countries has reported medications as a major culprit in anaphylaxis-related deaths, Jerschow said, the problem has been less defined in the United States. One reason is that there is no national registry for anaphylaxis deaths, she said. The study was ... Read more

TUESDAY, Oct. 7, 2014 – About half of all U.S. hospital patients receive antibiotics, and these drugs are commonly the ones more likely to promote the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, a new study found. "This is where the bad bugs spread, in the hospitals, because so many people are receiving antibiotics, and one of the only things that can spread are the antibiotic-resistant bugs," said Dr. Eli Perencevich, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. "We have to figure out better ways to reduce excess antibiotic use, and one way to do that is to get better at making diagnoses," he added. The study identified how many of more than 11,000 patients received antibiotics on a given day at one of 183 hospitals throughout the United States in 2011. The researchers found that 50 percent of these patients got at least one antibiotic, and ... Read more

MONDAY, Sept. 15, 2014 – Pediatricians prescribe antibiotics about twice as often as they're actually needed for children with ear and throat infections, a new study indicates. More than 11 million antibiotic prescriptions written each year for children and teens may be unnecessary, according to researchers from University of Washington and Seattle Children's Hospital. This excess antibiotic use not only fails to eradicate children's viral illnesses, researchers said, but supports the dangerous evolution of bacteria toward antibiotic resistance. "I think it's well-known that we prescribers overprescribe antibiotics, and our intent was to put a number on how often we're doing that," said study author Dr. Matthew Kronman, an assistant professor of infectious diseases at Seattle Children's Hospital. "But as we found out, there's really been no change in this [situation] over the last ... Read more

THURSDAY, May 15, 2014 – Children treated with antibiotics in their first year of life may face more than twice the risk of developing asthma later in life. However, the drugs themselves may not be at fault, researchers note. Instead, scientists believe that an impaired immune system and genetic variations could explain why these kids face a higher likelihood of developing asthma. The study, reported online May 15 in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, also didn't find any link between early use of antibiotics and development of allergic diseases. This rebuts a theory that antibiotics boost the risk of allergic asthma by disrupting the development of a child's immune system, the study authors noted. Antibiotics are used to treat a variety of ear and respiratory infections in kids. Researchers have been trying to figure out whether the antibiotic use has a connection to asthma rates. While ... Read more

TUESDAY, March 4, 2014 – Many hospitals across the United States overuse or misuse antibiotics, which fuels the growth of drug-resistant bacteria, federal health officials warned Tuesday. Doctors in some hospitals prescribe three times more antibiotics than doctors in the same departments at other medical centers, according to a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "We have to protect patients by protecting antibiotics," CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden said during a noon press briefing Tuesday. "The drugs we have today are in danger, and any new drugs we get could be lost just as quickly if we don't improve the way we prescribe and use them." The agency outlined ways hospitals can improve their prescribing practices through recommended "antibiotic stewardship" programs. The CDC also is seeking a $30 million increase in the fiscal 2015 budget to help ... Read more